We hit -40 this winter (with windchill) and mine still came back strong! It’s funny because I was lazy in the fall as well. I usually chop them about 4” from the ground and super insulate them. Well this past fall, I chopped them down and just covered them with about 4” of wood chips and the banana leaves. They still came back! The key is to cut the trunk to the ground in really cold areas. That trunk will freeze and suck the rot down to the roots. But if you chop them to the ground your fine
Your banana plants look so lush and healthy. Can you make a video of the banana fruit , showing how the seeds look and the texture? Im just curious about how the fruit looks. I think I purchased an unlabeled musa Basjoo. I have it in a very large pot about 40 galloon size. I'm tempted to put it in the ground to add a statement tropical look in my back yard. I'm in zone 9A Texas semi tropical, we do get low temps and snow; but its typically not common. With the weird climate changes, its hard to predict.
It will do well in 9a with minimal effort. That's a big pot. It should be able to produce pups in a pot that size so you could always leave it until a pup or two show up and then stick those outside just in case you don't have a musa basjoo :)
Oh they will thrive there! It got -10 (-40 with windchill) here this winter and mine are all 10’ tall already this summer. I chop mine down to the ground and cover them with wood chips. The key is to not let the water in the trunk/stem freeze. It’ll travel down and rot the roots. I’m not sure if you would have to chop them to the ground in zone 9, but it doesn’t hurt them. They still come back very strong
i'm in hardiness zone 7a-7b. Try a 12-inch layer of peat moss covering the stump of the bananas. The peat moss 1. is an insulator 2. decays where it touches the wet ground, producing heat
@@shwethakamath123 great! Everything -- 5 bananas, half dozen elephant ears. - / came back in early April 2024. I recommend the 6-8 inch peat moss, but they come back anyway without, it's just slower
Thank you for this. I am in SW Uk and have 2 in my garden. 2 years old and this Summer they are about 6ft. With some pups. No where near as big as yours though.
Wow after I watched your video I've order 2 plants in a 4 inch container. I live in San Antonio Texas 8b/9a zone. Our summers are very long and hot with plenty of sunshine. Im aware they need a lot of water since our weather is semi dry . Great video
They should do well for you. Mine started as 6 inch plants ordered online as well. They got to 3-4 feet the first year, 8 feet the second, and 14 feet in year 3.
Mine have seen as high as 110F. It's not normally that hot here. Average days in July-August are 80 ish. We regularly get a week at a time in the low to mid 90s. Water is the most important. You don't want them in standing water, but if the soil is well draining, you should water them every day during the hot months.
Ignoring the pup spread, how far away from things would you say to plant them? For instance, how far away from the pool edge did you plant the main tubers?
They're about 5 feet from the pool. I wouldn't risk putting them any closer myself, although you could probably get away with them a bit closer. I might push as close as 3 feet to something cheaper, but refinishing a pool is expensive! 🤣
@@simonaradu2717 the banana fuel I use is 15-5-30. I would probably go with the 15-15-15 between the two you mentioned. If you eat bananas, grind/chop the peels up and add them to the soil for some extra potassium.
My back yard is running out of places to put palms :D. I've also considered moving to a bigger property so haven't wanted to commit it to the ground yet.
Try 4 to reply... seems to be bugged. I don't have good success keeping baby bananas alive indoors over winter. About 80% of them die on me. With mature plants indoors, I have no issues. Things I have done that anecdotally improve the success rates - provide less water, keep them very trimmed, and put them in a sunny window if you have one.
@@vibonitatropics I'm in Vancouver WA. If you can do that in Seattle I should be able to do it down here, huh? Think I'll give it a try. Thanks for responding back.
These bananas do fruit for me but they are not good tasting bananas. You can cook with the flower pod which I have done and it's pretty good, but alot of effort
Do you amend the soil with anything? I've got a Basjoo thats about two foot tall right now and it seems to be growing very slow. It's a year old at this point and it was started indoors last year, moved outside this spring.
I use amzn.to/3PUHb1K and water every day. You'll want to water for your soil, but they are thirsty plants. The first year I had them in the ground, they only got a few feet tall. Second year they got about 8 feet and it wasn't until the third year that they got to their current height.
can this plant be pruned during the Summer months without damaging it? I have it for purely decorative purposes in front of my house, it's grown too big and I want to clean it a little
I have a few varieties that produce good tasting bananas although the big ones are more ornamental. The bananas are not worth eating due to their size and the seeds in them.
@@vibonitatropics I agree, not as meaty for sure, but wild bananas are a powerhouse of nutrition compared to the cross bred fake ones with no seeds. Bet my bottom dollar 1 of your tiny real bananas has more potassium than a whole bundle of the fake stuff from Walmart!
I have a the same banana plant you have. The new leaves randomly started becoming white to a very light green. Is it something I should be worried about? I’m in zone 6a.
@@vibonitatropics I give them fertilizer from Miracle-Gro all purpose plant food once every week on saturday and I water them every once every 2 days for about an hour or two.
You can, although you might need to take some extra precautions to keep them alive over winter. They might not get the same size either. Ultimately, you just have to keep the roots from freezing and they will grow back each year.
I opened some up but they were hollow. I have the video but never turned it into anything because I thought it would be lame... kinda like Geraldo Rivera opening AL Capone's vault.
